Field
Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to a method and apparatus for validating distributed energy resource (DER) as-designed parameters.
Description of the Related Art
Use of distributed energy resources (DERs) to produce energy from renewable resources is steadily gaining commercial acceptance due to the rapid depletion of existing fossil fuels and the increasing costs of current methods of generating power. One such type of DER is a solar power system comprising multiple photovoltaic (PV) modules that convert received solar power into a direct current (DC). In some solar power systems, module-level power electronics (e.g., DC-DC converters or DC-AC module-level power electronics) are coupled to each PV module for converting the DC current into an output current which may then be used to run appliances at a home or business, sold to a commercial power company, or stored for later use.
When evaluating the performance of a DER, actual energy production versus expected energy production is typically compared. However, expected energy production can often be significantly biased when systems are built or installed with configurations differing from what was designed. Such differences may result in significant variations in data used in computing DER system parameters, such as expected energy production.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for efficiently validating DER as-designed parameters.